IHC rejects contempt of court plea against PM

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday turned down a petition seeking contempt of court proceedings against Prime Minister Imran Khan for his recent remarks on the judiciary.

A single bench of the IHC comprising Chief Justice Athar Minallah heard the petition and rejected the same, saying that neither do courts fear criticism nor are sensitive about it.

The IHC bench noted in its verdict, "The Prime Minister of Pakistan namely Imran Khan has been elected to the highest executive public office by the people of Pakistan. His role in the 2007 historic lawyers' movement for establishing rule of law and supremacy of the Constitution is indeed acknowledged."

It added, "This court obviously does not expect intent on part of the worthy Prime Minister to undermine the integrity of the administration of justice. This court is therefore, satisfied that regardless of the selection of words, Imran Khan could not have intended to undermine the integrity of the administration of justice or the prestige of the courts."

The court maintained that the benefit of doubt must always go in favour of the representatives of the people of Pakistan. It continued that even otherwise utmost restraint ought to be exercised in initiating contempt proceedings against an elected prime minister because of its consequences, which may, inter alia, lead to disfranchising the people of Pakistan and depriving them of the right to choose as to who should represent and govern them.

"This court, therefore, presumes that the worthy Prime Minister was not properly briefed which had led to the factually incorrect statements made during his speech," said the IHC verdict.

Justice Athar noted, "For what has been discussed above, this court does not intend to initiate proceedings against an elected prime minister of Pakistan and therefore, the petition is accordingly dismissed in limine."

"Public confidence in the judicial system is the foundation of strong, effective and independent courts. The courts do not discourage the exercise of general rights of criticism made in good faith and which does not obstruct or impair the administration of justice and the right of a litigant to a fair trial," maintained the court.

It further said that the government is the main stakeholder of strong, effective and independent judicial system because it ensures its stability by upholding rule of law and it is in the interest of executive authorities that the respect and dignity of the courts and the administration of justice is maintained.

"It is thus inevitable that public trust in the administration of justice is not allowed to be undermined. Safeguarding the dignity and decorum of the courts and the administration of justice is essential for upholding rule of law and to ensure that disputes are decided in a fair manner. The executive authorities have a pivotal role in this regard and it is least expected that they would undermine public trust in the courts, let alone the chief executive of the state," maintained the IHC verdict.

In this matter, Advocate Saleemullah Khan filed the contempt of court petition saying that the Premier had "committed serious contempt."

In his petition, he referred to remarks made by the Prime Minister during a speech he delivered at the inaugural ceremony of Havelian-Mansehra section of the Hazara motorway at Havelian, where he urged Chief Justice of Pakistan Asif Saeed Khosa and senior judge of the Supreme Court Justice Gulzar Ahmed to restore public confidence in judiciary. The Premier said there was a perceived disparity in how the powerful and common people are treated in the country's judicial system.

Khan's statements had come days after the Lahore High Court (LHC) issued a verdict allowing former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to travel abroad for four weeks for medical treatment. The LHC, in its order, had also exempted Nawaz from paying the indemnity bond worth Rs7 billion, which the government had demanded from the PML-N supremo as a condition to let him go.